Greenfield in running for Hope Over Heroin

Other possible sites are Rocky Fork, county fairgrounds

By Angela Shepherd - ashepherd@civitasmedia.com

Coffey

Greenfield is in the running to host Hope Over Heroin in the spring, though a decision won’t be made until later in February.

The faith-based event, according to its website, “is much more than a weekend outreach. We unite regional faith-based, non-faith based, addiction recovery and grief resources at one place, most often for the first time, and connect those hurting the most with long-term support and resources.”

Greenfield City Manager Ron Coffey at Wednesday’s village council meeting said that the other possible locations for the event are the Rocky Fork Lake area and the Highland County Fairgrounds. The logistical requirements of hosting such an event in Greenfield have been a matter of previous discussion, as the same event held previously in Wilmington drew a couple thousand people.

Greenfield Village Council members lent their support last year to Greenfield hosting the event.

Coffey said a decision on where the drug awareness event will be held is expected to be made at the planning group’s next meeting on Feb. 28 at 6 p.m. at the Hillsboro Municipal Court.

The tentatively-scheduled June 16-17 event is geared toward raising awareness, providing education and information on treatment, wellness, and recovery in Highland County.

Check for updates on the Hope for Highland County Facebook page. For more information about Hope Over Heroin, go to hopeoverheroin.com.

On other matters, Coffey reported that Vectren’s ongoing pipeline replacement in Greenfield is slated to continue through 2017. He said it is part of a multi-year project to replace aged bare steel and cast iron pipes throughout the state. In Greenfield alone, the company is expected to spend $1.3 million on replacing more than two miles of gas main and more than 130 service lines this year.

To view a map of the streets to be affected this year, go to vectren.com/pipelinereplacement and click on the “Active Projects Map.”

The city manager said that because of high lead content in the water systems of Flint, Mich. and Sebring, Ohio, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is requiring that all communities with water systems “identify and map areas of the distribution system that are known to, or likely to, contain lead service lines.”

Coffey said the village regularly takes water samples and checks for lead, but will be working with an engineering firm on getting the mandate accomplished by the EPA’s March 9 deadline.

Greenfield has been awarded Tree City USA status for a third consecutive year. Receiving the award means that the village is continuing to meet requirements for the award that includes tree-related expenditures of at least $2 per capita, having an active tree commission, observing Arbor Day, and other activities.

Coffey reported Wednesday that the village’s annual report is complete. The report includs some of the highlights of the year for the village like the completion of the years-in-the-making, multi-million dollar railroad rehabilitation project, the economic growth experienced with new industry coming to town and existing businesses expanding their workforces, and the industrial park being on its way to becoming certified with the state.

Also included in the report, along with other department reports as well, are the police department reports with its statistics for 2016.

According to the report submitted by GPD Chief Jeremiah Oyer, last year’s statistics include: the department received 5,304 calls for service, there were 945 reported offenses, 134 traffic crashes investigated, 8,807 home security checks, 228 prisoners housed at the jail, and 740 arrests made.

For the complete annual report, go to Greenfield’s web page, www.greenfieldohio.net. The link to the annual report is on the right column of the home page.

The Greenfield Village Council meets the first and third Wednesday of each month at 7:30 p.m. in council chambers on the first floor of the City Building. The meetings are open to the public. To be put on the agenda, call the village offices at 937-981-3500.